Improving livelihoods of young Cambodians in difficult circumstances through prevention and sustainable social reintegration

After many years of war, social and economic uncertainty, Phnom Penh today, is a booming city. With a high migration dynamic from (and within) the countryside, a large number of Cambodia’s rural population is on the move for a better living. Out of approximately 1.4 million people, more than 45% are under the age of 18 years. The project of Mith Samlanh, which was reviewed in this mid-term evaluation, is embedded in this context with all its facets of high economic growth rates, while social development is lagging behind for a series of reasons, most of all the disinterest, neglect and exploitation of the poorer sections of the population by those, who manage to control the country’s natural, economic resources and political power. Nevertheless, poorer urban sections and immigrants from the countryside struggle hard to eke out a living in the squatter settlements and on the streets of Phnom Penh, which leaves them vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. Approximately 349,000 people live in the various squatter communities, including an estimated 180,000 youth (50%) who receive little or no parental support. This population is a prime target for prostitution, trafficking and violence.

Since 1994, Mith Samlanh works with these young people and their families with an aim to improve their difficult living conditions, and to prepare them for the upward socio-economic struggle of urban life. Mith Samlanh workers enable vulnerable youth at risk of becoming street children in Kampong Cham and in Phnom Penh, to become actors in their own development, and assist them in finding a sustainable future aside from street life. Young people living already on the streets of Phnom Penh are assisted by an outreach team and gain access to a youth-centred holistic programme addressing all their development needs, including general and vocational education. Subsequently, reintegration efforts into their families, home communities or job placements intend to ensure sustainability. Last but not least, the project endeavours to enhance capacities of Mith Samlanh’s own staff, partner organisations and local authorities.